EPA Announces $12.7 Million in New Competitive Grants

On August 1, EPA announced the availability of $12.7 million to be awarded on a competitive basis to provide training and technical assistance to improve water quality and enable small public water systems to provide safe drinking water. Eligible applicants are nonprofit organizations, nonprofit private universities and colleges, and public institutions of higher education. Eligible recipients of the training and technical assistance are small public water systems, small publicly-owned wastewater systems, communities served by onsite/decentralized wastewater systems, and owners of private wells.

Applications must address one of the following four National Priority Areas:

(1) Training and Technical Assistance for Small Public Water Systems to Achieve and Maintain Compliance with the SDWA (training and technical assistance for small public water systems to enable such systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the SDWA);

(2) Training and Technical Assistance to Improve Financial and Managerial Capacity and Enable Small Public Water Systems to Provide Safe Drinking Water (training and technical assistance for small public water systems to build their financial and managerial capacity to provide safe drinking water over the long term);

(3) Training and Technical Assistance for Small Publicly-Owned Wastewater Systems and Onsite/Decentralized Wastewater Systems to Help Improve Water Quality (training and technical assistance to improve operational performance of wastewater systems over the long-term, thereby improving public health and water quality); or

(4) Training and Technical Assistance for Private Well Owners to Help Improve Water Quality (training and technical assistance to provide private well owners with information they need to protect their drinking water supply and improve water quality).